Can Tony Abbott be trusted?

The Rudd government's frontbench has gone into overdrive following a televised admission by Tony Abbott that he sometimes doesn't tell the "gospel truth".

The Opposition Leader was asked on the ABC's 7.30 Report last night about his promise this year not to propose any new taxes, which he reneged on a month later by announcing a levy to fund paid parental leave.

It's kind of like the fine print on the bottom of the packet saying, 'use this product, but by the way, it might kill you'

Mr Abbott said his scripted remarks could be taken as "gospel truth" but, "in the heat of discussion you go a little bit further".

Admission ... Opposition Leader Tony Abbott. Photo: John Woudstra

Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard came out swinging just hours after the admission, and frontbenchers kept up the scorching attack today.

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Finance Minister Lindsay Tanner was the first to hit the airwaves and health minister Nicola Roxon was bringing up the rear, saying Mr Abbott was cracked under pressue when asked serious questions.

"It's kind of like the fine print on the bottom of the packet saying, 'Use this product but, by the way, it might kill you,'" Mr Tanner told ABC Radio.

Ms Roxon said in Adelaide: "I’m not as religiously minded as Mr Abbott, so I’m not sure that gospel truth is the right term for me, but I am very confident that I always answer questions to the best of my ability and I think there is an obligation for us to do that.’’

Treasurer Wayne Swan told Adelaide radio that Mr Abbott's comment was a warning to voters about his fitness for office.

"I think what happened last night was that Tony Abbott cracked under pressure," he told Fairfax Radio.

"He basically said that you can't believe a word he says and I just don't know where that would leave Australia if Tony Abbott was prime minister in the middle of a global financial crisis."

Infrastructure Minister Anthony Albanese said Mr Abbott's "extraordinary admission" went further than the doctrine of core and non-core promises espoused by former prime minister John Howard.

He also defended the government's policy backflips on emissions trading and promise to build 260 new childcare centres.

"The government has been absolutely upfront when we haven't been able to meet our commitments," he told ABC Radio.

Work Choices still on opposition agenda: minister

Small Business Minister Craig Emerson said an example of Mr Abbott not being genuine was when he said the Coalition would not use the phrase Work Choices, rather than ruling out a return to the industrial relations policy altogether.

"What he was actually saying to the Australian people was, 'You elect me, I reserve the right later to bring back Work Choices and I'll say, well that was just [said] in the heat of the moment,'" he told Sky News.

As a consequence, working Australians were at risk, Mr Emerson maintained.

"He is a very big risk to working Australians because he has now reserved for himself the right, after the election when he says he won't bring back Work Choices, to say '‘I made that as a heat-of-the-moment comment and therefore, I don't need to be held to account."

Opposition frontbencher Barnaby Joyce had defended Mr Abbott's comments, Mr Emerson said, by saying the Opposition Leader needed to be excused because he was still learning the ropes.

"Today Mr Abbott's sidekick Barnaby Joyce has said that we need to understand, because Mr Abbott is new in the job.

"What Mr Joyce is saying is that Mr Abbott is inexperienced, that he is not ready to be opposition leader, and if you are not ready to be the opposition leader of this country, how can you be ready to be the prime minister of this country?"

Liberal frontbencher Ian Macfarlane came to his leader's defence, describing Mr Abbott as being "very straight, very philosophical" during a high-pressure interview.

"What we are seeing from Tony is very much a straight shooter," he told Sky News, adding that voters should judge politicians on actions not words.

18 May
Tony Abbott’s performance on the 7.30 Report makes a mockery of his carefully cultivated image of being a straight talker. By his own admission, Abbott urges people to treat with caution anything he says during the so-called heat of discussion.